The invention relates to heating instruments and more particularly to clothes irons and more even particularly to indicating temperatures of clothes irons.
Many household devices employ heat to achieve their goals. For example, curling irons provide heat for sculpting hair into desired forms, and clothes irons provide a heated flat surface for removing wrinkles from clothes. Both curling irons and clothes irons may have passages for supplying steam to help with the devices"" objectives. Other devices exist that also use heat to achieve desired results, but the heat may be of an intensity or level that is hazardous, e.g., that may burn skin if the device is touched on a heated surface. Heating devices often have temperature selectors so that a desired amount of heat can be provided by the device, e.g., so that a clothes iron may be used for cottons versus linens, or may be hot enough to provide steam.
In general, in an aspect, the invention provides a temperature indicator for a clothes iron. The indicator includes a heat-sensitive element configured to be coupled to a clothes iron and configured to be disposed to receive heat from a heating surface of the clothes iron, and a visual indicator coupled to the heat-sensitive element and configured to provide a visual indication of heat received by the heat-sensitive element.
Implementations of the invention may include one or more of the following features. The heat-sensitive element and the visual indicator comprise a thermochromatic material. The the thermochromatic material is configured to reflect light differently in response to receiving heat from the heating surface of the clothes iron. The thermochromatic material is configured to be substantially opaque at room temperature and substantially transparent in response to receiving heat from the heating surface, the visual indicator further comprising an image disposed beneath the thermochromatic material such that the image is substantially obscured when the thermochromatic material is substantially opaque and is substantially visible through the thermochromatic material when the thermochromatic material is substantially transparent.
Implementations of the invention may also include one or more of the following features. The visual indicator is disposed on at least one of the heating surface of the clothes iron, a side surface of the clothes iron. The visual indicator provides a substantially binary indication of temperature of the heating surface. The visual indicator provides indicia of at least three amounts of temperature of the heating surface.
In general, in another aspect, the invention provides a clothes iron including a grip portion configured to be grasped by a person, a heating surface coupled to the grip portion and configured to provide heat, and a heat-indicative apparatus coupled to the heating surface and configured to provide a visual indication of a temperature of the heating surface.
Implementations of the invention may include one or more of the following features. The heat-indicative apparatus comprises a thermochromatic material. The thermochromatic material is configured to reflect light differently in response to receiving heat from the heating surface of the clothes iron. The thermochromatic material is configured to be substantially opaque at room temperature and substantially transparent in response to receiving heat from the heating surface, the visual indicator further comprising an image disposed beneath the thermochromatic material such that the image is substantially obscured when the thermochromatic material is substantially opaque and is substantially visible through the thermochromatic material when the thermochromatic material is substantially transparent. The thermochromatic material is configured to be different colors when at approximately room temperature versus at a temperature above a predetermined threshold.
Implementations of the invention may also include one or more of the following features. The heat-indicative apparatus comprises at least one visual indicator disposed on at least one of the heating surface of the clothes iron and a side surface of the clothes iron. The heat-indicative apparatus comprises a visual indicator configured to provide a substantially binary indication of temperature of the heating surface. The heat-indicative apparatus comprises a visual indicator configured to provide indicia of at least three amounts of temperature of the heating surface. The indication of temperature is an indication of whether the heating surface is below a temperature at which the heating surface is considered to be safe to touch.
In general, in another aspect, the invention provides a clothes iron including a body including a handle, a base, and a heat-providing surface, and means for indicating a temperature of the heat-providing surface, the means including indicia of the heat-providing surface being at a first temperature considered to be safe to touch and of the heat-providing surface being at a second temperature considered to be unsafe to touch.
Implementations of the invention may include the indicating means including an indication of the heat-providing surface being at a third temperature that is different from the first and second temperatures.
Various aspects of the invention may provide one or more of the following advantages. Indications of temperature of devices and/or surfaces of devices may be provided. Temperature indications may be provided using thermistors, thermochromatic items such as paints, and/or thermocouples. Temperature indications may be provided visually, e.g., on a surface of a heat-providing device such as an iron. Visual temperature indications may be provided on a top of an iron. Temperature indications may indicate safe versus unsafe, and/or grades of temperature, e.g., for different purposes such as ironing different types of clothes or providing steam. Audio indications of temperature may be provided. A grip of a device may be responsive to body heat to solidify while conforming to a user""s grip.